Seed-cleaning machine.



S. HERB.

SEED CLEANING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 10, 1916.

Patented Feb. 20, 1917.

1 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

SHIRL HERB, OF CRAWFORDSVILLE, INDIANA, .ASSIGNOI l/CIJO CRAWFORDSVILLESEED as to endanger the crop-return from fields planted with suchmixture. Many of the obnoxious seeds, ofwhich the buckhorn is one,- havea coating which'becomes' mucilaginous when 'moistened, while thedesirable seeds are not so constituted, and the object-of this inventionis to-provide a means for thorou hly moisten-ing the mucilagi-I nouscoate' seeds and adhering thein to a granular material which willincrease their bulk so they may bereadily separated in this conditionfrom the desirable seeds.

I accomplish the objects. of this invention by the mechanism illustratedin the ac- .companyin drawing, in which the complete-machineis shown inoperative position in side elevation, with some of the parts in partialvertical section.

Mounted atthe top of a suitable frame 1, is a vertical cylindrical tube2, within which is a vertical rotating brush 3.- The mixed seeds to becleaned are deposited through a tube 4, into the upper-end of the tube2,

and water is simultaneously introduced through pipe 5, having a faucet6, for regulating the supply. The sides of the tube -2 are preferablycorrugated to formbaflies 7, for the brushes to,-beat the seeds againstto insure a thorough moistening of the latter. The moistened seedsdischarge by gravity through the loweropen end of the tube 2,

and are received upon a horizontal traveling apron 8. The apron 8 isan'endless one 45 I w drums 9, 9, onshaft's which arejournaled in boxessupported b the-frame 1, and the which passes around a pair. ofhorizontal two drumsfare su ciently separated to afford a length ofapron, which by being moved. slowly .Will g1ve. -'the moistureon theseeds time enough-to soakinto 'the'coating of those like the buckhornand make them -Below the'apron is a'revolvmg drum 10,

Specification of Letters Patent.

COMPANY, OF GRAWFORDSVILLE, INDIANA, A FIRM COMPOSED OF ABNEB H.FLANIGAN AND SHIRL HERB, OF CRAWFORDSVILLE,'INDIANA. I

SEED-CLEANING mncnmn.

Patented Feb. 20', 1917.

Application filed .n'u 10, 1916. Serial No. 108,490.

I and above it is a device 34, similar in construction and operationtothe well known dust-collector, from which dry saw-dust,

deposited therein as will hereinafter be de-- scribed, is discharged tothe apron. The travel of the apron is in the direction indicated by thearrows, and by the turn of the T belt around the drum. 9' the moistseeds,

and saw-dust on it, will drop off. These droppings will. be arrested byan inclined chute 12, supported below the drum 9 by the frame '1, andwill be discharged into the drum 10 by the chute which enters it. A

able source (not shown), discharges into the opposite end of the drum 10from chute 12, and to increase the air-flow through the saw-dust aretumbled together and are.

pipe. 13, conveying hot air from any suitthoroughly mixed for thepurpose of bring- I ing every gummy seed into contacti'with a piece ofsaw-dust, to which it will adhere by reason of its nature, aided by theabsorptiveness of the saw-dust in its dry condition.

- The drum 10' hasa'nnular outside channels 14 which form tracks forrollers 15 supported bythe frame 1, upon which rollers the drum is freeto-revolve. Near the middle of the drum is an outside annular row ofworm teeth 16, engaged by a worm 17, on a rotating shaft extendingtransversely of the 3 frame and supported by the latter.

Within the drum I prefer toplace a pludown the drum and for raising themand 'rality of inwardly projecting vanes 18 in'- spiral rows to move theseeds and saw-dust v' dropping'them through the current of heated airtodry them, it being important that the time of exposure of the seeds tothe heat of the air be of suchshort duration as I not to injuretheirgerminating -qualities.

. At the bottom of the section of the stay -air pipe 13, next tothe'revolvy ingdrum 10, is an air-valve 19, at the mouth 4 -'of..aninclined chute 20, which allows the 1 dried [mixture to escape from theinfluence 50f the .hot air W1tl10118110W111g the hot air.

'to .esc'ape- Suspend d spring straps 21 from; the if tion and operationand chute discharges,

: cally all of the seed saw-dust which,

screen passes down onto table 27 with the vThis I removeby a suction fan31, located below the table 27, and drawing frame 1 is a shoe 22, whichis connected by a p1tman 23 with a rotating eccentric 24: and vibrated.Th1s shoe has a wire screen 25,

upon one end of which the discharge through chute 20 is received. Theshoe and screen are elevated at the end where the and the constantvibration imparted to the former, work the dis charged material down.The desirable crop-seeds, having no adherent saw-dust, pass freelythrough the screen, as also do some of the others which have gatheredonly very small particles of saw-dust, but the major portion of theundesirable seeds with larger adherent saw-dust particles move to thelower end of the screen and are tailed ofi through a laterally inclinedspout 26.

The-good seeds together with 'themucilaginous'seeds having insufficientsaw-dust particles to hold them back, are deposited upon the floor ofthe shoe 22, and the latter, being upon-a table 27 having an upwardlyextending flange which limits the width of the discharge opening. Thetable is pivoted at the angle, and is adjusted up and down by a lever 28which is held by a pin as shown. By adjusting the table and its flangethe size of the opening while those with adherent sawdust tails over andis carried ofi through a lateral spout 30.

I have found by experience that practiwith adherent saw-dust areeliminated here by the screen, but some of the unattached has passedthrough the good seeds.

air across the path of. the mixed. material dropping off of the slopingtable, a wind-trunk 32. The cleaned seed falls into the hopper 33 whereit is taken care of in the usual .way, and the saw-dust drawn out of itthrough is discharged into a dust the top 'of'the frame 1, through anairtrunk 35.

The dust collector from its lower end the accumulated saw-dust isdeposited again upon the wet seeds being carried by the apron 8.

The deficiency of saw-dust enbulkier and proportionately lighterthan thegood seeds will arrange .themis' adjusted so as to allow the heaviergood seeds to pass through,

that were not removed throughthewind trunk and fan collector 34', at

34 is of usualconstr'ucplanation is deemed unnecessary.

Having thus fully described my inven- 5 5 tion what I claim as new andwish to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. In a machine for separating mucilaginous from non-mucilaginous coatedseeds,

means for moistening said seeds, means for subjecting them to themoisture until the coats of the mucilaginous seeds become adhesive,means for adding a material to which the adhesive seeds will adhere,means for tumbling and mixing said last material 535,

with the moistened seeds, means for drying the mixture in hot air, andmeans for separating said last material with its adhering seeds from theother seeds.

2. In a machine for separating mucilagiea nous from non-mucilaginouscoated seeds, means for moistening said seeds until the coats of themucilaginous ones are adhesive, means for adding a material to which theI adhesive seeds will adhere, bling said last materialand moistenedseeds together in a current of hot air, and means for separating saidlastmaterial with its adhering seeds from the other seeds.

3. In a machine nous from non-mucilaglnous coated seeds, means for-moistening said seeds until the coats of the mucilaginous ones areadhesive,

means for adding a material to which the adhesive seeds will adhere, ingsaid last material with the moistened seeds, means comprising a rotatingtube for drying the mixture in hot air, and means for separating saidlast material with its adhering seeds from the other seeds including mea vibrator which arranges the masses in strata according to size andgravity, and means for separating the strata.

' 4. In a machine for separating mucilaginous from non-mucilaginouscoated seeds, 1115 means for moistening said seeds until the coats ofthe mucilaginous, onesare adhesive, means for adding a material to whichthe adhesive ones will adhere, means for tum- --bling said last materialand the moistened 112a seeds together in a current of hot air, and meansfor separating said last material. with its adhering seeds eluding" avibrator whicharranges the masses: in gravity, and means strata.

5. In a machine for separating mucilagi nous from non-mucilaginouscoated seeds,

for separating the means for wetting the seeds comprising a 1530 meansfor tum- @153 for separating mucilagirec means for mix- 1615 from theother seeds instrata accordingto size and tube to which the seeds andwater are supplied, said tube having inside projections,

and a brush rotating in said tube and heating the seeds against theprojections in com ones will adhere, means for drying the mixture andmeans for separating the nonmucilaginous seeds from the rest of themixture;

6. In a machine for separating mucilaginous from non-mucilaginous coatedseeds, means for moistening said seeds until the coats of themucilaginous ones are adhesive, and means for mixing a material with thewet seeds to which the adhesive ones will adhere and for drying themixture comprising a rotating drum into which 'the'wet mixture isintroduced while a current of hot air is passed through the drum.

7. In a machine for separating mucilaginous from non-mucilaginous coatedseeds,

means for moistening said seeds until the coats of the mucilaginous onesare adhesive, means for mixing a material with the wet seeds to whichthe adhesive seeds willadhere and for drying the mixture comprising arotating drum into which the wet mixture is introduced while a currentof hot air is passed through the drum, and means in the drum to raisethe mixture and drop it through the hot air current.

8. In a machine for separating mucilaginous from non-mucilaginous coatedseeds, the combination, of means for moistening said seeds until thecoats of the mucilaginous ones are adhesive, means for mixing a materialwith the wet seeds to which the adhesive seeds will adhere and fordrying the mixture comprising a rotating drum into which the wet mixtureis introduced while a current of air is passed through the drum, meansfor separating the non-mucilaginous coated seeds from the rest of themiXt'ure,--means for discharging the mixture fromuthe drum to saidseparating means and an air-valve controlling said discharge.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and seal atIndianapolis, Indiana, this 8th day of June, A; D. one thousand ninehundred and sixteen.

SHIRL HERB. [La]

